Veteran Phone Operator Keeps Things Going Smoothly In Lake

LEESBURG — Chances are that nearly everyone in Lake County has talked to Mary Youngblood at one time or another.

Since World War II, Youngblood, 60, literally has been plugged into Lake County, answering questions and putting people in touch with each other as a Leesburg telephone operator.

She started her career in July 1945 with Florida Telephone Co., which has since become United Telephone System.

Although her effervescent personality and courteous manner have remained constant over the past 40 years, she said the machinery she uses to do her job has gone from Stone Age to Space Age.

Gone is the manual switchboard, hot cubbyhole and 34-cent-per-hour salary (and a penny extra for the night shift). Those were the days, Youngblood recalls, when operators sometimes received electrical shocks from their headsets during thunderstorms. Those were the days when private and party lines were color coded and operators relayed emergency calls to police and fire agencies.

Now she works in a sleek, air conditioned office with modern computers programmed to instantaneously relay the calls that for decades she did by hand.

Youngblood said that while modern technology has revolutionized the communications industry, some things never change, namely the many calls for information and advice. ''You will always need an operator,'' she said, ''because people need a person to talk to and you can't replace a human brain.''

Youngblood, who said she plans to retire in two years, is active with the Main Street Baptist Church in Leesburg. She has traveled extensively, plays piano and enjoys outdoor sports, particularly swimming and waterskiing.

''Mary is very loyal, courteous, dependable and knowledgeable of her job,'' says Pat Nelson, United Telephone operator services supervisor. ''We feel that she looks upon the company as family.''